> Six Sisters Hills. One of the hills is noted as being that of the bee-
> headed sister. Any ideas where these are?
Surely it's the Six Sisters in Battle Valley (see The Haunted Ruins -- the trolls call them the Six Hags). (I'm not sure which one is bee-headed. These are also special hills to the Grazers, I believe.
George Harris averred
> A simulationist is someone that
> prefers for a roleplaying world to act in a consistent manner, with the
> various characters acting as actual humans (or whatever) would, and
> resolutions be made solely with regard to what is the most likely outcome,
> rather than what best suits the story, say.
I'm not going to discuss your definition per se, but I will jump in with a comment as the term relates to Hero Wars.
Hero Wars represents a paradigm shift for most of us.
Until now, most RPGs have been simulationist. They attempt to model the real (or imaginary) world by simulating its processes. For example, RQ models combat by rules for the process of making an attack and the process of thwarting that attack. Each die roll generally simulates some easily-identifiable real world event or process. You may not agree that it's the best simulation, but the mapping is clear.
Hero Wars also models the real world, but by simulating its outcomes. A die roll in Hero Wars probably doesn't directly represent some real world event - -- notably rolls in combat. Advantage ebbs and flows, and only after the combat is over do you know the outcome. A winning die roll doesn't necessarily equate to a well-swung sword. But combat is still modelled -- a good warrior is more likely to defeat a poor warrior, just as in a simulationist game. And while Hero Wars doesn't tell you as much about the outcome as does RuneQuest, it's as detailed as Pendragon in this regard.
[Aside: Pendragon and Hero Wars are probably more accurate than RuneQuest, which has near-instant death from blood loss and no long-term effects from most wounds.]
Hero Wars also chooses a different world to model than does RuneQuest, a more literary (or adventure movie) view of Glorantha, but some simulationist games do this too (Star Wars being a notable example).
Perhaps it would be better to call most games process-oriented and Hero Wars outcome-oriented, but I doubt this will happen.
Note that at no time did I use the word story. Nothing in Hero Wars says that you have to use the game system to tell a particular story. As Jeff Richard's session at Glorantha-Con VII shows, it's just as easy to let the characters change the story as with any game system.
One more comment: one problem with simulationist games is deciding on the level of detail. RuneQuest is fairly detailed. Pendragon is considerably more abstract. Detailed systems are usually more complex and slow. Abstract systems frequently lose accuracy. Hero Wars steps outside the decision of where to draw the line by not simulating at all.
Lewis Jardine
> David Dunham is unsure about Vinga At the Hill of Gold:
>
> She does not appear in the orthadox Yelmalio version but:
Nor does she appear in the versions starring Vingkot, Halamalao, Heliakal, Inora, or Zorak Zoran. Again, I refer you to Enclosure 2.
It's possible that Vinga is a bit player in the Vingkot version, but it seems to me that she is not part of this myth.
BTW, I believe red hair occurs naturally among most Wareran populations (we know it does in Pentans). I think Vinga happened to have red hair, there's nothing mythical about it.
Simon Hibbs wondered of the Mostali:
> I wonder where they're makeing the plug for Magasta's Pool
No need, it already exists. After GC7, Greg mentioned they're planning a huge engineering project in Jrustela to move it from its current location to the whirlpool. Sure, there will be some disgruntled Storm Bulls in Prax, but the Schedule is more important.
David Dunham <mailto:dunham_at_pensee.com> Glorantha/RQ page: <http://www.pensee.com/dunham/glorantha.html> Imagination is more important than knowledge. -- Albert Einstein
End of The Glorantha Digest V5 #649
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